Ohio Gov. John Kasich is working with his political advisers on plans to run for president in 2020, Politico reported.
Nine Republicans in or near Kasich's political operation said that he and his team have been informally talking about next steps with donors and fellow politicians, the report said.
Kasich ran unsuccessfully for the Republican presidential nomination in 2016.
Some of Kasich's advisers are eyeing the possibility that Donald Trump might not run for a second term, by his own choice or not. Kasich also is weighing the idea of running as an independent in a general election campaign, Politico reported.
A run in 2020 has not been announced, but this marks a change from a few months ago when Kasich and his associates said that he had no interest in running for president again. He has signed up for events around the U.S. that would put him in contact with activists and thinkers that he might need for a potential run, Politico noted.
"He's actually been pretty straightforward about it: he would like to run again if he sees an opening. And if Trump runs again, there's no opening. But if Trump doesn't run, there is one," veteran Republican operative Charlie Black told the website.
Former New Hampshire Attorney General Tom Rath said Kasich has an opportunity for success as an independent candidate.
"There is, I think, among this electorate, much less party discipline, and much more willingness to accept something out of the usual. And (the midterm election in) '18 is going to make that even worse," Rath told Politico.
The team also sees a possibility of running if a far-left Democratic opponent for Trump emerges such as Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., or Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., the report said.
No one is certain about Kasich's plans, Rath said, and "I don't think anyone knows… because we don't know what the circumstances are. Anybody who thinks they know what's going to happen in 2020, all I can tell you is they're going to be wrong."
Others in the political realm have assumed Kasich is running. The Democratic National Committee has an opposition research project in the works on Kasich, the report said.